Patent Bill Is Amended to Protect Imaging

WASHINGTON–A small provision in a big patent reform bill could make a big difference to the financial services industry at the expense of a small patent holder that claims broad rights over the process of creating and storing check images. According to an American Banker article, an amendment to the bill, which the Senate Judiciary Committee approved Thursday night, would protect financial institutions against infringement claims regarding imaging methods. A version of the bill that cleared the House Judiciary Committee last week does not include such an amendment. The legislation now goes to the floor of each chamber for further debate, and whether the check-clearing provision, which the financial industry broadly supports, will survive remains an open question. Broad efforts to reform patent law have been made in recent years only to be snuffed out at the committee level. That changed when a Supreme Court ruling in April raised the standard for granting patents for innovations that stem from "prior art." The banking industry has been supporting the reform effort, which also would make it harder to get so-called "business method" patents.